"It’s all there, in one place, ready to go with no need to enter card details, delivering a brilliant experience in an instant," said Barclays UK chief executive Ashok Vaswani.

Android Pay is due to launch imminently in the UK, supported by several big banks, including HSBC and Lloyds. But, Barclays is taking advantage of Android being open source, pursuing its own app strategy.

“A service built around Barclays' customer base is smart, and support for NFC-led services means hundreds of thousands of locations in the country will support it. The contactless limit being higher than Android Pay is another bonus," said Ernest Doku, telecoms expert at uSwitch.

“But most customers want one mobile payment app, not different apps for multiple services - this will make for a fractured experience," he added.

Payments can be made up to £30 with a simple swipe, but payments of up tp £100 can be made by entering the card's pin through the app.

The bank has also focused on its own payment methods with a range of wearables, including a wristband, key fob and sticker that attaches to your phone, called bPay.